So yesterday, Monday, I booked all of my flights to Australia! I'm spending three days in Cairns, three days in Sydney, and three days in Melbourne. I fly back to Auckland at 5am on the 12th, so I have a day before the long journey home to hang out in Auckland and repack all of my stuff and whatnot. And that is all booked! Whew. It was a hit to my bank account, but it will hopefully be 1000% worth it. And today I booked my hostels. I think the best one will be in Cairns because in Sydney and Melbourne I just booked the cheapest ones I could get that weren't holes - which means I will probably be sleeping with my passport on me and using my earplugs and out of the hostel by 8am. It's fine. I'm on a student's budget and as long as I don't get bed bugs or things stolen, I can deal. My earplugs will drown out the bumpin' bar music below me.
These past couple days have been pretty uneventful. I called my dads and grandpas yesterday for American Father's Day, took a Zumba class last night (pretty fun, though I definitely prefer taking an actual dance class), watched SYTYCD today - SO GOOD, and actually starting preparing my things to go home. I have 11 days until I leave for Australia and 22 days until I fly home, but many of my friends have started doing the same and it feels normal to do. Plus, starting to pack will actually help clear up some space in the closet that is my room.
When I was cleaning, I found a bunch of paperwork way back from orientation. It was so weird, reading the "helpful tips about Auckland" pamphlets, like where the grocery store is and the campus map. I also came across my departure pamphlet. It's strange to think how long ago that was and how far I've come from knowing nothing to knowing enough that this is home and I give directions when tourists ask. (Because I'm not a tourist in Auckland anymore. I have a grocery store card and a university ID and keys to a flat and tuna in my cupboard that I bought two months ago.) But the whole nostalgic/reflective on study abroad post will come later, so I won't do that now.
Tomorrow Joe (another IESer) and I leave for Matamata, where I will finally visit Hobbiton - where the Shire is set in LOTR. I'm not hugely into LOTR but I'm excited nonetheless and feel it's an essential when being in New Zealand. Plus, there will be green rolling hills and sheep. Mmm. Maddi is meeting us in Thames in the Coromandel region (she's already been to Hobbiton and wanted to sleep in - Joe and I are picking up the car at 8am..) and we'll be in Coromandel somewhere until Thursday night. I'd love to stay longer, but Joe and I both have finals on Saturday that we really should start studying for. I hope I'm making you all proud with my newfound [nonexistant] study skills. Travel > study. Fact. And if you were abroad, I hope you'd feel the same way. I will whip my butt back into academic shape in September. :)
But yeah. So that's where I'm off to. Pretty excited! Hobbiton, Coromandel, one day of cramming, then my sociology final, then FREEDOM. Aka a few days to hang out with some of my abroad besties and then off to Australia! My life. Man. I would not trade it for anything right now. Well, besides the final. I would love to trade that.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Flying solo: Wellington
Some information about Wellington: it is the capital of New Zealand. There are tons of cafes and cute little stores everywhere, and it sits on the harbor. It's a very cute place, I liked it a lot.
I got into Wellington with enough to check into my hostel before meeting Kathryn, an IES girl who was also in Wellington, for dinner. I got a burrito and a cocktail - definitely a change from soup the past couple nights! We decided to hit up Te Papa - the museum in Wellington and known as the best in NZ - since it's open late on Thursday nights. We went around the second floor, which is about how New Zealand was formed as well as the animals that inhabit (or used to inhabit) NZ. After the museum, we decided to part ways and go off to bed since the next day was to be an early one.
I had a really awful night's sleep that night, so I was eager to get up and out of my room by 7:30am. Kathryn and I weren't meeting until 8:30am, so I sat in a cafe with my muffin and cappuccino until we caught the bus to Weta Cave.
Weta Cave is not exactly as I was expecting it. Weta has been a huge factor in many movies - the most well known being LOTR and King Kong. It's in a house though; I was expecting a museum. However, there were lots of figures and models up, including good ol' Golem. Also, did I mention we were there so early that we had to wait for it to open at 9am? Yeah. We also got to watch a video about Weta which was cool.
After Weta we took the bus back to the city and went to the rest of Te Papa. We learned all about how humans have impacted New Zealand even though people have only lived here for like 800 years? And about Maori and non-Maori culture, and contemporary New Zealand art. With only a short lunch break, four and a half hours later we were definitely museum-ed out and went to cafe and talked for a while. Then we explored some secondhand book shops (which seriously reminded me of the library in Beauty and the Beast) and ate free dinner of questionable mac and cheese at my hostel. We ate with a girl who slept above me last night, and wound up going for gelato with her. Ohmygoodness it was so good. ugh. I want some now. Then I went back to the hostel and went to bed after talking to more of my dormmates. Very exciting.
Kathryn went home on Saturday, so I was solo again! I was planning on going up to Mount Victoria but it was raining, so I sat in cafe for most of the morning and read Water for Elephants - which was excellent, if I do say so myself. I then wandered to Frank Kitt's Underground market by the harbor and browsed through all of the crafts that they sell there. I bought several souvenir gifts for people there too. :) I had a crêpe and a BLT before stopping at the grocery store and my hostel. Then headed to the rest of my day!
I took the Cable Car up to the Botanic Gardens. The Cable Car pretty much takes you up the huge hill in Wellington, it's a historic thing. They have a whole museum on it, but I didn't go in it. The Cable Car was cool. I was happy because being a NZ student gives me so many discounts.. only $2 round trip. Cheaper than the bus!
I walked around the Botanic Gardens for a while. Since it's winter, not many flowers were visible, but the plants were very green since it had been raining. I particularly enjoyed the cactus garden - besides getting poked in the face when I got too close. Hmm.
I also stopped in the cafe near the rose gardens at the bottom of the hill and got the best Chai Latte ever. So delicious.
Then I walked back up the hill to the Carter Observatory. Which is basically the planetarium. I don't think I've been to the planetarium since about fifth grade, but I was really excited to go. There was lots of basic information about the universe and galaxies and planets - but it was cool because there were all sorts of Maori influence in the observatory. The Maori used the stars to navigate around the Pacific, so there were Maori constellations, as well as Maori names for things and Maori myths about how the universe was created - including more about Papa-tu-a-nuku and Ranganui! Seriously, like review of Kapa Haka all over the place. The observatory was small but quaint. I really enjoyed it. There was a presentation after I looked around and learned how to find Matariki. Matariki marks the Maori new year and is only visible early to mid-June. The guide showed us how to find it, but I don't really remember anymore. it was cool to learn about though.
After the observatory I made my way back down the Cable Car and to my hostel. I ate my free dinner and then didn't really know what to do. I wound up talking to a Canadian in my hostel for like five hours. It was interesting.. he was an exchange student in Melbourne. And basically hates Americans. Really started my thinking about how Americans take the blame for so much which is our fault as a whole but not always individually; you can't confuse people with politics. Because this person totally did. He told me he hates America because of our politics and our political system. Just because I'm American, doesn't mean I'm suppressing poor people and social programs and having the "**** yeah, America is the best country ever" attitude and don't care about the world. And it's so unfair that no matter what, I'm associated with that. I've encountered more American distaste than I thought I would. Maybe it's because I'm a tree-hugging feminist who believes in things like universal healthcare, gay marriage (no, not civil unions, marriage), being culturally tolerant, and trying to overcome prejudices, but the amount of blame put on me from others because I am American astonishes me. I don't really perpetuate the negative American archetype. It's sad that as an American, I constantly have to apologize for my culture and the people from America. I'm taught that I shouldn't be proud of my culture and nationality because as a whole, we don't always do the right thing. But you know something? Studying abroad has actually made me more proud of where I come from and who I am. I can't help where I was born; all I can do it support and rally for positive changes. I don't assume every Middle Eastern person is a terrorist or that all Mexicans are "stealing American jobs" as some do. It's not true. People are not politics, and differing individuals make up cultures; it is unfair to assume things about people because of where they come from. I am proud of the arts, such as dance and music, and quality of healthcare in America. Anyway. I'm going to stop on this tangent before I keep repeating myself.
Anyway. Right. So Sunday I got up at 6am to walk to the Railway Station and take the train back to Auckland from Wellington. It was an eleven and a half hour train ride. I probably slept for at least twenty minutes out of every hour of the ride. I was bummed because it was cloudy/rainy for a good part of the trip, so I didn't see any of the mountains in Tongariro National Park. Boo. Also, seeing fat, wooly sheep clumsily gallop away from the train (that wouldn't have touched them anyway) was hilarious. And cows! I'd never seen cows run before.. but yeah. Got back home in Auckland. The train was nice, but I was very happy to get off the train and get back to my flat.
HOORAY finished writing about this trip! :) It was fabulous, and I loved traveling alone for the msot part. I got to do what I wanted, when I wanted. It was nice to meet up with Kathryn for part of Wellington, but the fact that I enjoyed traveling alone makes me excited for Australia..
I got into Wellington with enough to check into my hostel before meeting Kathryn, an IES girl who was also in Wellington, for dinner. I got a burrito and a cocktail - definitely a change from soup the past couple nights! We decided to hit up Te Papa - the museum in Wellington and known as the best in NZ - since it's open late on Thursday nights. We went around the second floor, which is about how New Zealand was formed as well as the animals that inhabit (or used to inhabit) NZ. After the museum, we decided to part ways and go off to bed since the next day was to be an early one.
I had a really awful night's sleep that night, so I was eager to get up and out of my room by 7:30am. Kathryn and I weren't meeting until 8:30am, so I sat in a cafe with my muffin and cappuccino until we caught the bus to Weta Cave.Weta Cave is not exactly as I was expecting it. Weta has been a huge factor in many movies - the most well known being LOTR and King Kong. It's in a house though; I was expecting a museum. However, there were lots of figures and models up, including good ol' Golem. Also, did I mention we were there so early that we had to wait for it to open at 9am? Yeah. We also got to watch a video about Weta which was cool.
After Weta we took the bus back to the city and went to the rest of Te Papa. We learned all about how humans have impacted New Zealand even though people have only lived here for like 800 years? And about Maori and non-Maori culture, and contemporary New Zealand art. With only a short lunch break, four and a half hours later we were definitely museum-ed out and went to cafe and talked for a while. Then we explored some secondhand book shops (which seriously reminded me of the library in Beauty and the Beast) and ate free dinner of questionable mac and cheese at my hostel. We ate with a girl who slept above me last night, and wound up going for gelato with her. Ohmygoodness it was so good. ugh. I want some now. Then I went back to the hostel and went to bed after talking to more of my dormmates. Very exciting.
Kathryn went home on Saturday, so I was solo again! I was planning on going up to Mount Victoria but it was raining, so I sat in cafe for most of the morning and read Water for Elephants - which was excellent, if I do say so myself. I then wandered to Frank Kitt's Underground market by the harbor and browsed through all of the crafts that they sell there. I bought several souvenir gifts for people there too. :) I had a crêpe and a BLT before stopping at the grocery store and my hostel. Then headed to the rest of my day!I took the Cable Car up to the Botanic Gardens. The Cable Car pretty much takes you up the huge hill in Wellington, it's a historic thing. They have a whole museum on it, but I didn't go in it. The Cable Car was cool. I was happy because being a NZ student gives me so many discounts.. only $2 round trip. Cheaper than the bus!
I walked around the Botanic Gardens for a while. Since it's winter, not many flowers were visible, but the plants were very green since it had been raining. I particularly enjoyed the cactus garden - besides getting poked in the face when I got too close. Hmm.
I also stopped in the cafe near the rose gardens at the bottom of the hill and got the best Chai Latte ever. So delicious.
Then I walked back up the hill to the Carter Observatory. Which is basically the planetarium. I don't think I've been to the planetarium since about fifth grade, but I was really excited to go. There was lots of basic information about the universe and galaxies and planets - but it was cool because there were all sorts of Maori influence in the observatory. The Maori used the stars to navigate around the Pacific, so there were Maori constellations, as well as Maori names for things and Maori myths about how the universe was created - including more about Papa-tu-a-nuku and Ranganui! Seriously, like review of Kapa Haka all over the place. The observatory was small but quaint. I really enjoyed it. There was a presentation after I looked around and learned how to find Matariki. Matariki marks the Maori new year and is only visible early to mid-June. The guide showed us how to find it, but I don't really remember anymore. it was cool to learn about though.
After the observatory I made my way back down the Cable Car and to my hostel. I ate my free dinner and then didn't really know what to do. I wound up talking to a Canadian in my hostel for like five hours. It was interesting.. he was an exchange student in Melbourne. And basically hates Americans. Really started my thinking about how Americans take the blame for so much which is our fault as a whole but not always individually; you can't confuse people with politics. Because this person totally did. He told me he hates America because of our politics and our political system. Just because I'm American, doesn't mean I'm suppressing poor people and social programs and having the "**** yeah, America is the best country ever" attitude and don't care about the world. And it's so unfair that no matter what, I'm associated with that. I've encountered more American distaste than I thought I would. Maybe it's because I'm a tree-hugging feminist who believes in things like universal healthcare, gay marriage (no, not civil unions, marriage), being culturally tolerant, and trying to overcome prejudices, but the amount of blame put on me from others because I am American astonishes me. I don't really perpetuate the negative American archetype. It's sad that as an American, I constantly have to apologize for my culture and the people from America. I'm taught that I shouldn't be proud of my culture and nationality because as a whole, we don't always do the right thing. But you know something? Studying abroad has actually made me more proud of where I come from and who I am. I can't help where I was born; all I can do it support and rally for positive changes. I don't assume every Middle Eastern person is a terrorist or that all Mexicans are "stealing American jobs" as some do. It's not true. People are not politics, and differing individuals make up cultures; it is unfair to assume things about people because of where they come from. I am proud of the arts, such as dance and music, and quality of healthcare in America. Anyway. I'm going to stop on this tangent before I keep repeating myself.Anyway. Right. So Sunday I got up at 6am to walk to the Railway Station and take the train back to Auckland from Wellington. It was an eleven and a half hour train ride. I probably slept for at least twenty minutes out of every hour of the ride. I was bummed because it was cloudy/rainy for a good part of the trip, so I didn't see any of the mountains in Tongariro National Park. Boo. Also, seeing fat, wooly sheep clumsily gallop away from the train (that wouldn't have touched them anyway) was hilarious. And cows! I'd never seen cows run before.. but yeah. Got back home in Auckland. The train was nice, but I was very happy to get off the train and get back to my flat.
HOORAY finished writing about this trip! :) It was fabulous, and I loved traveling alone for the msot part. I got to do what I wanted, when I wanted. It was nice to meet up with Kathryn for part of Wellington, but the fact that I enjoyed traveling alone makes me excited for Australia..
Monday, June 20, 2011
Flying solo: Abel Tasman and traveling
The second day of my trip I woke up early and got on the bus to do part of the Abel Tasman Cost to Coast walk. It's supposed to be a really pretty walk, and I was doing a relatively easy "holiday" walk. The bus ride to Kaiteriteri was pretty - saw the sun rise just past the mountains. I took a boat around to Anchorage, which was really cool. I met a German guy and an American family of eight who were traveling, though I was the only one to do the exact walk I was doing.
The ferry brought me to Anchorage, which was absolutely gorgeous. Apparently during the summer the bay is filled with yachts because there's not really any waves, but as it was "winter" (aka sunny with need for two light layers of clothing) it was completely deserted. I felt a little alone as the boat pulled away, but started out on my journey towards Marahau. I will admit that I was not expecting it to be a four-hour, 12.4km walk. I thought it would be about half that. The walk up the mountain from the beach was brutal. It was very steep and I stopped for picture breaks (aka catch-my-breath breaks) every few minutes. I was worried that the whole walk would be like that - thankfully, it wasn't. The views of the ocean were incredible. Seriously so beautiful. The rest of the walk, which did take almost four hours of walking, was good. However, I took a few breaks to drop down to the beach, one of which I lay on the sand and read my book. By the end of the walk I was definitely ready to be done - one of my knees hurt. :( But it was an awesome walk. Very peaceful. Also, I didn't see another human for two hours. It was strange.
At the end of the walk, I ended in Marahau. There are these wooden carvings at a shop, whcih I explored for a bit before catching the bus back to the hostel. Then I ate my free soup, talked with a traveler from Seattle, and went to bed by 9pm. It was a good day. Again, traveling solo? Awesome. Get ready for twenty pictures, mostly of scenery from the walk. (I took about 200 pictures on this walk, by the way. Twenty is not many.)
looking cool as always
cute as
Papa-tu-a-nuku and Ranganui
The next morning I took the bus from Nelson to Picton. The bus ride was beautiful. Lots of tree-covered mountains, while I listened to music that matched the road-trip feel. And didn't fall asleep! Probably the only time I was in transport on the trip where I didn't fall asleep. I got to Picton and had a little over an hour to kill, so I explored. Went in some souvenir shops, ate some unfortunately gross fish n chips, and then boarded the Interislander ferry to Wellington!
The ferry ride through the Marlborough Sounds was gorgeous. So many pretty trees on the land coming out of the water. It was rather windy on the deck so I didn't spend too much time there. Not to mention once we got through the sounds - which, again, were beautiful and very peaceful for being on a massive ferry - and reached the Cook Straight.. that was less fun. The crew announced that it was "less than favorable", and less than favorable it was. It was like being on a rollercoaster for two hours, up and down and up and down. Seriously not fun, I felt so seasick. I had my motion sickness bag at the ready but thank goodness I didn't need to use it. I sat in a reclining chair inside and tried to sleep; it kind of worked. My iPod was dead so droning out the very loud man on his cell phone was pretty much impossible..
can tell already that the Cook Straight will be "less than favorable"..
But it ended and I arrived safe and sound in Wellington around 5:30pm. Which I will write about Wellington on my next post!
The ferry brought me to Anchorage, which was absolutely gorgeous. Apparently during the summer the bay is filled with yachts because there's not really any waves, but as it was "winter" (aka sunny with need for two light layers of clothing) it was completely deserted. I felt a little alone as the boat pulled away, but started out on my journey towards Marahau. I will admit that I was not expecting it to be a four-hour, 12.4km walk. I thought it would be about half that. The walk up the mountain from the beach was brutal. It was very steep and I stopped for picture breaks (aka catch-my-breath breaks) every few minutes. I was worried that the whole walk would be like that - thankfully, it wasn't. The views of the ocean were incredible. Seriously so beautiful. The rest of the walk, which did take almost four hours of walking, was good. However, I took a few breaks to drop down to the beach, one of which I lay on the sand and read my book. By the end of the walk I was definitely ready to be done - one of my knees hurt. :( But it was an awesome walk. Very peaceful. Also, I didn't see another human for two hours. It was strange.
At the end of the walk, I ended in Marahau. There are these wooden carvings at a shop, whcih I explored for a bit before catching the bus back to the hostel. Then I ate my free soup, talked with a traveler from Seattle, and went to bed by 9pm. It was a good day. Again, traveling solo? Awesome. Get ready for twenty pictures, mostly of scenery from the walk. (I took about 200 pictures on this walk, by the way. Twenty is not many.)
looking cool as always
cute as
Papa-tu-a-nuku and Ranganui
The next morning I took the bus from Nelson to Picton. The bus ride was beautiful. Lots of tree-covered mountains, while I listened to music that matched the road-trip feel. And didn't fall asleep! Probably the only time I was in transport on the trip where I didn't fall asleep. I got to Picton and had a little over an hour to kill, so I explored. Went in some souvenir shops, ate some unfortunately gross fish n chips, and then boarded the Interislander ferry to Wellington!The ferry ride through the Marlborough Sounds was gorgeous. So many pretty trees on the land coming out of the water. It was rather windy on the deck so I didn't spend too much time there. Not to mention once we got through the sounds - which, again, were beautiful and very peaceful for being on a massive ferry - and reached the Cook Straight.. that was less fun. The crew announced that it was "less than favorable", and less than favorable it was. It was like being on a rollercoaster for two hours, up and down and up and down. Seriously not fun, I felt so seasick. I had my motion sickness bag at the ready but thank goodness I didn't need to use it. I sat in a reclining chair inside and tried to sleep; it kind of worked. My iPod was dead so droning out the very loud man on his cell phone was pretty much impossible..
can tell already that the Cook Straight will be "less than favorable"..
But it ended and I arrived safe and sound in Wellington around 5:30pm. Which I will write about Wellington on my next post!
Flying solo: Nelson
Okay, I lied. I figured I'm not studying anyway and I booked my flights to Australia today (!) and need a break from looking at Cairns hostels anyway.
So Nelson. First off, here is where Nelson is located. It's the northern part of the South Island of New Zealand, right next to Abel Tasman National Park. I also took this trip by myself, and the first thing I learned about traveling by yourself is that you need to get over the miserable first bit, and then it's awesome.
I was so exhausted flying to Nelson. I legitimately slept one hour before my 4:30am alarm went off, announcing my unwelcome wakeup time to catch my shuttle. I feel asleep in the shuttle to the airport, across the seats in the airport, and on the plane. Exhausted.. kind of an understatement. I wish I'd been more awake for my flight though - I have limited memory of flying over the beautiful Marlborough Sounds. I think I was even sleeping when we took off and landed.. new record.
Nelson was freezing. Extremely cute and I loved it, but freezing. I believe it was four degrees Celcius when my plane got in at 8am.. brutal. After a short trip to the hostel, I napped on the couch in the tv lounge because my bed wasn't ready yet and I was exhausted. I ended up walking to the "Centre of New Zealand" after my bed still wasn't ready at 10:30am, which was pretty. I was still feeling pretty miserable at this point, but I checked into my hostel and then decided to walk to the iSITE for some tips on what to do - the wine tour wasn't happening.
A guy from Argentina who works at the hostel walked me to the iSITE. I guess I looked a little lost when I was holding my map at the end of the block.. After some advice from the iSITE people, I stopped for a quick cappuccino (my new drink of choice, I guess) and a sandwich at a cafe and then headed out on my adventure.
I was walking towards Tahananui Beach when I came across an art gallery. Being the curious person that I am, I stopped in. It was so cool! Local artists produced the majority of the work, and it ranged from jewelry to sculptures to candle holders to paintings. I bought a couple things, and after they made a makeshift box for me I continued on to the beach. At this point, I was feeling much better about traveling solo and just generally loving life. I was so proud of this discovery that I'd made.
The walk to the beach was along the water, which was pretty. Extremely windy; I entertained myself by taking pictures every 10m and singing Beatles songs. I continued onto the World of Wearable Art & Classic Cars museum (aka the WOW museum), which was only a half hour's walk further than the beach. I was neutral about the cars, but was only allowed to take pictures of the cars - not the World of Wearable Art designs. Which was a bummer because the outfits were SO cool and creative. They were made out of wood, paper maché, exquisite fabrics, metal, etc. If you want to check out some of the things I saw, click here. It's seriously worth checking out. Ugh I wish I could have taken pictures. SO cool.
I took the bus back to the hostel at sunset, where I got my free dinner of soup and bread! I was exhausted from the day's events so I journaled, texted my mom that I had survived my first day traveling alone, talked to a German girl who was staying in my room, and went to bed by 8pm. Yeah, that's a luxury of traveling alone; you can go to bed and get up whenever you want.
Also, some more cute things about my hostel: it was in a house in a residential neighborhood. So I basically stayed in a bedroom that had two bunks - and no one slept above me either night so that was nice. And free dinner of homemade vegetable soup/bread. And free breakfast of cereal/toast. Pretty good foam mattress. Individual lights for each bed. Seriously, so great. Probably my favorite hostel to date. If you are ever traveling through Nelson, New Zealand, I recommend Paradiso Backpacker. :)
So Nelson. First off, here is where Nelson is located. It's the northern part of the South Island of New Zealand, right next to Abel Tasman National Park. I also took this trip by myself, and the first thing I learned about traveling by yourself is that you need to get over the miserable first bit, and then it's awesome.
I was so exhausted flying to Nelson. I legitimately slept one hour before my 4:30am alarm went off, announcing my unwelcome wakeup time to catch my shuttle. I feel asleep in the shuttle to the airport, across the seats in the airport, and on the plane. Exhausted.. kind of an understatement. I wish I'd been more awake for my flight though - I have limited memory of flying over the beautiful Marlborough Sounds. I think I was even sleeping when we took off and landed.. new record.
Nelson was freezing. Extremely cute and I loved it, but freezing. I believe it was four degrees Celcius when my plane got in at 8am.. brutal. After a short trip to the hostel, I napped on the couch in the tv lounge because my bed wasn't ready yet and I was exhausted. I ended up walking to the "Centre of New Zealand" after my bed still wasn't ready at 10:30am, which was pretty. I was still feeling pretty miserable at this point, but I checked into my hostel and then decided to walk to the iSITE for some tips on what to do - the wine tour wasn't happening.
cute little Nelson
centre of New Zealand
A guy from Argentina who works at the hostel walked me to the iSITE. I guess I looked a little lost when I was holding my map at the end of the block.. After some advice from the iSITE people, I stopped for a quick cappuccino (my new drink of choice, I guess) and a sandwich at a cafe and then headed out on my adventure.I was walking towards Tahananui Beach when I came across an art gallery. Being the curious person that I am, I stopped in. It was so cool! Local artists produced the majority of the work, and it ranged from jewelry to sculptures to candle holders to paintings. I bought a couple things, and after they made a makeshift box for me I continued on to the beach. At this point, I was feeling much better about traveling solo and just generally loving life. I was so proud of this discovery that I'd made.
The walk to the beach was along the water, which was pretty. Extremely windy; I entertained myself by taking pictures every 10m and singing Beatles songs. I continued onto the World of Wearable Art & Classic Cars museum (aka the WOW museum), which was only a half hour's walk further than the beach. I was neutral about the cars, but was only allowed to take pictures of the cars - not the World of Wearable Art designs. Which was a bummer because the outfits were SO cool and creative. They were made out of wood, paper maché, exquisite fabrics, metal, etc. If you want to check out some of the things I saw, click here. It's seriously worth checking out. Ugh I wish I could have taken pictures. SO cool.
I took the bus back to the hostel at sunset, where I got my free dinner of soup and bread! I was exhausted from the day's events so I journaled, texted my mom that I had survived my first day traveling alone, talked to a German girl who was staying in my room, and went to bed by 8pm. Yeah, that's a luxury of traveling alone; you can go to bed and get up whenever you want.
Also, some more cute things about my hostel: it was in a house in a residential neighborhood. So I basically stayed in a bedroom that had two bunks - and no one slept above me either night so that was nice. And free dinner of homemade vegetable soup/bread. And free breakfast of cereal/toast. Pretty good foam mattress. Individual lights for each bed. Seriously, so great. Probably my favorite hostel to date. If you are ever traveling through Nelson, New Zealand, I recommend Paradiso Backpacker. :)
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